RICHMOND—On December 9, 2025, the GO Virginia State Board approved the following statewide competitive project, led by GO Virginia Region 3 in collaboration with Region 2. Region 2 consists of the cities of Covington, Lynchburg, Radford, Roanoke, and Salem and the counties of Alleghany, Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, Craig, Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Montgomery, Pulaski, and Roanoke, and Region 3 includes the cities of Danville and Martinsville and the counties of Amelia, Brunswick, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Halifax, Henry, Lunenberg, Mecklenburg, Nottoway, Patrick, Pittsylvania, and Prince Edward.

Blue Ridge Innovation Corridor Vision 2050

The Blue Ridge Innovation Corridor (BRIC) will develop a megaregional playbook called Vision 2050 to guide the BRIC region, which includes the counties of Botetourt, Craig, Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Halifax, Henry, Montgomery, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Pulaski, and Roanoke and the cities of Danville, Martinsville, Radford, Roanoke, and Salem. BRIC is a coalition of more than 50 CEOs and institutional leaders focused on advancing this quickly growing region, which is Virginia’s fourth-largest economic engine.

The goal of the Vision 2050 playbook is to position the BRIC region as a national hub in three traded industry clusters: advanced manufacturing, life sciences and biotechnology, and IT and emerging technology. The playbook will develop four deliverables: a strategy for scaling the three clusters; a prioritized list and sequencing plan to invest in infrastructure such as transportation and broadband; a roadmap outlining how BRIC will fund its strategy; and a framework for connecting BRIC’s assets into one cohesive innovation ecosystem.

“Our long-term planning effort, Vision 2050, is designed to unite the region’s strengths into a single economic platform with the scale, connectivity, and focus needed to attract transformational investment,” said Rachel Yost, acting executive director of the Blue Ridge Innovation Corridor.

The project partners collaborating on this effort between GO Virginia Regions 2 and 3 include management consultancy S.I.R., Virginia Tech, and the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.

The project will complement the efforts of the following initiatives: Project VITAL, the AM2 Tech Hub, and GO TEC.

"This multi-region planning grant will provide a base inventory of current assets and develop a strategy to help these assets reach their highest potential with regard to the three specific industry clusters. This unique approach will promote smart growth in this region of the state," said Paul Denham, chair of the GO Virginia Region 2 council.

After this planning grant is completed, a statewide competitive implementation grant is expected to follow.

The GO Virginia board approved a total of $250,000 in state funds for the project, which is leveraging $125,000 in non-state sources.

Contact
John Provo
540-357-2949
jprovo@vt.edu